Beatrice Mumbi

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I am a Kenyan national currently pursuing an MA in Public Policy and Administration. I am currently working with an international refugee-serving organization Kenya as the regional advocacy officer covering five countries in Eastern Africa. Previously, I have worked with organizations promoting human rights and civil society development both in Kenya and in the islands of the South Pacific (Vanuatu and Fiji). My interests include democratization in Africa, African foreign policies, immigration and asylum policies and sustainable development.

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European Commission recently launched a much publicized fund aimed at addressing root causes of irregular migration in Africa. The Emergency Trust Fund for stability and addressing root causes of irregular migration and displaced persons in Africa is meant to be the magic that will hopefully keep desperate would-be migrants from taking the dangerous journey to Europe.

The EU-Turkey deal has set a bad precedent to other countries in the world especially those hosting large numbers of asylum seekers and refugees. The deal has the implication that asylum seeking is no longer a right (at least not in the EU) and neither are the provisions of the 1951 Refugee Convention nor the 1967 Protocol binding to state parties.

An ambitious full regional integration plan by the East African Community has been in the works for the last 16 years after a similar deal collapsed in 1977. Informed by the recent experiences of other regional blocks such as the EU, there are expectations that this time round, the Community will do better.

African states have performed dual roles producing refugees while offering asylum to others. However the economic status of many receiving countries is too low to support provision of adequate basic services to their own citizenry and refugees are perceived as an extra burden. Civil society organizations have therefore taken on provision of vital services to fill this gap, complementing the work of UNHCR, the body mandated to safeguard and protect the rights of refugees.